Journal Article

Racialized Policing: Residents' Perceptions in Three Neighborhoods

Weitzer, Ronald

2000

Overview

One of the most controversial issues in policing concerns allegations of racial bias. This article examines citizens' perceptions of racialized policing in three neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., that vary by racial composition and class position: a middle-class white community, a middle-class black community, and a lower-class black community. In-depth interviews examined residents' perceptions of differential police treatment of individual blacks and whites in Washington and disparate police practices in black and white neighborhoods. Findings indicate, first, that there is substantial agreement across the communities in the belief that police treat blacks and whites differerently; and secondly, there is racial variation in respondents' explanations for racial disparities. On the question of residents' assessments of police relations with their own community relative to other-race communities, a neighborhood difference is found, with the black middle-class neighborhood standing apart from the other two neighborhoods.

• Publisher: Law and Society Association,Blackwell,Sage Publications for the Law and Society Association,Cambridge University Press
• Subject: African Americans / Allegations / Black communities / Black people / Black White Differences / Black white relations / Criminal justice / Cultures and civilizations / Ethnic Neighborhoods / Ethnic relations. Racism / Law enforcement / Neighborhoods / Perceptions / Police / Police Community Relations / Police services / Policing / Public opinion / Racial bias / Racial discrimination / Racial profiling / Racialization / Racism / Retirement communities / Social classes / Social Perception / Sociology / Symposium on Norms, Law, and Order in the City / USA / Washington DC / Washington, D.C / White people / Whites